It comes as no shock to anyone–especially someone in the communications technology industry–that technology moves forward at a rapid pace and builds upon itself. After all, we’re all familiar with Moore’s Law and Edholm’s Law.

Internet Protocol technology has carried the communications industry through an amazing revolution over the last few decades and has changed the core essence of voice communications, not only in the United States, but also around the world. It wasn’t that long ago that long-distance telephone call rates were nearly $.20 a minute domestically, and international rates were even more astronomical. The main reason for this was primarily because the infrastructure was so expensive, and it was a matter of cost recovery by the local exchange carriers.

New technology that allowed the migration of analog switching equipment to digital packet networks, and bandwidth increases over existing mediums, such as DWDM technology (effectively increasing the number of colors on a single fiber from two to more than 160) has allowed carriers to increase both bandwidth and throughput, spreading the effective cost over a much larger audience.

But what’s good for the goose may not be good for the gander. In other words, while IP technology has enabled global communications to occur at a much more affordable rate–effectively reducing the cost per user–it has also had an unintended negative side effect that will cause significant hardship for some users.

For some time, now it’s been reported that potential interoperability issues exist with some legacy, analog-based technologies such as TDD/TTY devices for the hearing impaired or deaf, medical monitoring devices, home alarm systems, fax machines and some ATMs.

Additionally, E911 can become problematic, not necessarily because of the technology, but because the user can relocate the endpoint without administrative control. This breaks the model that a telephone number equals a physical address or location, which is the core of our current E911 architecture.

There is no denying that analog-based telephony is a dying breed.

Last December, an article that appeared in ‘Governing’ by chief editor Tod Newcombe put forth some very sobering statistics. According to US Telecom, ILEC’s in the US have lost 70 percent of the residential telephone business to wireless carriers and cable providers. With that kind of degradation in customer base, it completely upsets the revenue model and return on investment for the large Central Office equipment required to provide legacy analog landline services. It really comes down to simple math.

For example:

Say you buy a tiny Central Office for $5 million, which has an expected lifespan (as is) of 10 years, or 120 months. That Central Office services 10,000 customers, making the effective cost per customer $4.17 per month.

$5,000,000 divided by 10,0000 divided by 60

If 70 percent of your customer base disappears, your monthly cost per customer goes to $13.89 per month–representing a 336 percent increase in expense over revenue.

Ultimately, the Federal Communications Commission is there to protect us. Large carriers can’t simply do what they want, when they want. What they do, and what they charge is controlled by tariffs that are under scrutiny by the Federal Communications Commission, and ultimately the general public, if you know where to look. The FCC is very proactive with information, and distributes a Daily Digest linking relevant filings, and activities.

The Daily Digest provides a brief synopsis of Commission orders, news releases, speeches, public notices and all other FCC documents that are released each business day. The Daily Digest is released via email and on the FCC Web Site by about 12:00 p.m and contains hypertext links to the listed documents. Subscribing is easy, simply send an email to subscribe@info.fcc.gov. Leave the subject line blank. In the body of the email, write “subscribe digest” followed by your first name and your last name. For example, “Subscribe digest Mark Fletcher.”

The FCC Transition Task Force, formed under FCC chairman Tom Wheeler’s directive, will produce status reports, requests for comment, and other pertinent information that will all be distributed through the Daily Digest. In addition to other items of interest, I for one will be monitoring this initiative, and the ultimate sunset of the PSTN network.

Mark J. Fletcher, ENP is the Chief Architect for Worldwide Public Safety Solutions at Avaya. As a seasoned professional with nearly 30 years of service, he provides the strategic roadmap and direction of Next Generation Emergency Services in both the Enterprise and Government portfolios at Avaya. In 2014, Fletcher was made a member of the NENA Institute Board in the US, and co-chair of the EENA NG112 Committee in the EU, where he provides insight to State and Federal legislators globally driving forward both innovation and compliance.

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Published by @Fletch911

With more than 3 decades of experience, I have worked in almost every segment of the telecommunications industry; With many years in the field as a technician, as well as experience building and managing several of the world's largest private voice networks, I have a unique view of the telecommunications industry from various perspectives, including extensive knowledge of both TDM and VoIP environments.
I proudly hold the NENA Emergency Number Professional (ENP) certification using this knowledge in my current position as Chief Architect for Avaya’s Public Safety Solutions in the Avaya Office of the CTO. In this role, I ensure the roadmap and strategies of Avaya meet the requirements of the field with new product development for both Enterprise and Government customers and have a solid roadmap to Next Generation Emergency Services globally.
I am regularly asked to speak at many industry and user group events and have been recognized internationally for my weekly Podcasts and Avaya CONNECTED Blogs.
In addition to my Avaya role, I represent Avaya as an active member in several Public Safety and E911 organizations. I hold a position on the FCC Disability Advisory Committee and the FCC Task Force for Optimized PSAP Architectures. I am proud to serve on the APCO International Standards Development Committee, as well as a regular contributor to the European Emergency Number Association activities. I often provide technical input to legislators and regulators as well as the industry in general in an effort to drive forward NG Emergency Services compliance.
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